Jewish News Roundup

Are you in the know? Introducing the MJL Jewish news roundup, featuring important, interesting, and informative stories from around the Jewish world.

Yehoshua Engleman says, â€œHearing even a single note of Godly music can make people stop appreciating human voices, for they know that nothing can ever compare. One is left with the shame of being merely mortal.â€? (The Jerusalem Post)

A glimpse at â€œthe only place in the Middle East beyond Israelâ€™s borders where Arab students and scholars and Israeli scholars meet on a regular basis and discuss Israeli history, literature and culture â€” in Hebrewâ€? But: â€œThere are no signs â€¦There is no Web site. There are no announcements in newspapersâ€?. (Forward)

JERRY FALWELL:

Although Falwell often boasted that “the Jewish people in America and Israel and all over the world have no dearer friend than Jerry Falwellâ€?, Evan R. Goldstein argues that this was not at all true. (Haaretz)

And Former TIer Andrew Silow-Carroll says Falwell â€œleft a grim legacyâ€¦ he reduced the religious debate in this country to a dogfight over a few narrow and unnecessarily distracting issues.â€? (NJ Jewish News)

But Jonathan Tobin calls Falwell â€œamong our most zealous allies on the question of Israel, its security and its place in the worldâ€?, and regrets that he was â€œnot merely unappreciated, but often met with outright rejection.â€? (Jewish Exponent)

MONEY:

With the rise of Israeli philanthropy come some hard questions. Should Americans continue to send money to Israeli hospitals that now have their won foundations? What degree of transparency is needed? (Haaretz)

A new report analyzes the numerous flows of tax money the State of Israel derives from human trafficking, especially trafficking in women, including taxes on the earnings of brothels, taxi drivers, real estate (â€œThe moment a municipality discovers that an apartment is being used as a brothel and not for residential services, it starts charging a higher rate for commercial enterprisesâ€?) but also fines, confiscated bail etc. (Haaretz)

A â€œmassive shift in Jewish activismâ€?, with â€œcommunity relations councils across the countryâ€¦becoming lobbyists for government fundingâ€? is resulting in a lot of government money flowing to Jewish institutions including shuls and JCCs. (The Jewish Week)